Osinbajo commends progress in South Sudan peace talk

Vice President Yemi Osinbajo on Monday commended the progress being recorded in the South Sudan peace talk.

He made the commendation while signing as a witness to the peace deal brokered between the warring parties in the crisis in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.

According to a statement issued on Tuesday by his Senior Special Assistant on Media and Publicity, Laolu Akande, Osinbajo expressed hope that the conflict in the world’s newest country may come to an end soon.

The vice president was involved in the diplomatic talks that lasted at least two sessions on Monday in the Ethiopian capital under the auspices of the Inter-Governmental Authority for Development (IGAD) with the addition of a number of other key African countries like Nigeria and international agencies including the African Union, the United Nations and the European Union.

He said: “I am excited that this might be the end of the mystery that has engulfed South Sudan thus far.”

Osinbajo, who represented President Muhammadu Buhari at the summit, spoke after a long drawn diplomatic effort that produced an agreement initiated by the President of South Sudan, Salva Kiir Mayardit and fully signed by the leader of the warring faction of the Sudan Peoples’ Liberation Movement (SPLM), Riek Machar, who was a former South Sudan vice president.

The statement reads: “One of the key leaders of the ruling Sudan Peoples’ Liberation Movement (SPLM), Pagan Amum, signed the peace agreement, representing former political detainees in the South Sudanese conflict.

“While the South Sudan President is yet to fully sign the agreement, he has promised to conclude consultations on the power-sharing aspect of the agreement and then return to append his full signature very soon, expectedly within weeks.”

Other aspects of the agreement fully endorsed, according to the statement, included providing access for humanitarian assistance and the cessation of hostilities.

Speaking with journalists at the end of the meeting, Osinbajo said Nigeria and other stakeholders should be justifiably proud of Monday’s achievement.